During Lent, The Michigan Catholic, Detroit’s archdiocesan newspaper, is giving its readers space to tell personal stories of faith-changing moments. Writers to date have talked about difficult experiences — losing a job, an illness, an unexpected pregnancy – where they experienced grace and grew stronger in their faith.

Editor Marylynn Hewitt said the paper tried this approach a few years ago but it did not generate the same response as it has this time when the paper has a story for every week of Lent – primarily written by writers younger than 40.

Her take on the series is that “as Catholics, we’re to evangelize and what better way than to tell others what God has done in our life — helps us see him moving, breathing and being there for us.”

She also told Catholic News Service that the younger writers contributing to this series are “well versed in living out loud,” telling people about their lives through social networking, blogging and Twitter. “This, then, is a way to tie it into their faith,” she added.